How Successful Has 50 Cent’s Diddy Documentary Been?

“Sean Combs: The Reckoning” made a big debut on Netflix, logging nearly 22 million total minutes viewed in its first six days of release. The docuseries was the most-watched show in the United States for the week of Dec. 1 to Dec. 7, and it was the second-most viewed show globally over that same period, only behind the new “Stranger Things” season.

What Were The Big Revelations In 50 Cent’s Diddy Docuseries?

Jackson’s documentary includes previously unseen footage that Combs himself had commissioned amid his arrest and trial, which has provoked legal threats from Combs’ team, who say the footage was illegally obtained. In footage captured just before Combs’ arrest in September 2024, he is depicted speaking with his lawyer, Marc Agnifilo, telling him: “We have to find somebody that’ll work with us, whether they’re from this country or from another country. It can be somebody that has dealt in the dirtiest of dirty business of media and propaganda,” stating he is “taking eight nuclear bombs straight to the head” and “losing.” After former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard sued Combs for sexual assault that same month, Combs is seen talking to his team, telling them to find “any Dawn Richard interview where she speaks positively about her relationship with Diddy” while slamming the barrage of civil suits filed against him as “f—ing dozens of liars.” The documentary also includes interviews with two jurors from Combs’ criminal trial, which ended in convictions on two prostitution charges and acquittals on three more serious counts, leading to a 50-month prison sentence. One juror acknowledged Combs was violent toward his ex-girlfriend Cassie Ventura, citing surveillance footage of Combs attacking her in a hotel, but said “domestic violence wasn’t one of the charges.” Another juror said he was “confused” because the jury would be presented evidence of Combs being violent toward Ventura, but “the next minute, they’re going on dinners and trips.”

What Has Diddy Said About The Documentary?

Combs sent a cease-and-desist letter to Netflix, stating he “will not hesitate” to take legal action. His spokesperson Juda Engelmayer told Forbes the use of footage Combs commissioned is “fundamentally unfair, and illegal,” adding it was originally intended for a documentary Combs wanted to make about his life. Netflix, in response, said the footage was “legally obtained” and claimed the documentary is “not a hit piece.”